Tequila, Salt, and a Lime
by DFM
Summary: What if Castle and Beckett hadn't made up before the release of Heat Wave? AU


**Title:** Tequila, Salt, and a Lime

**Pairings:** Castle/Beckett UST

**Rating:** PG

**Summary:** What if Castle and Beckett hadn't made up before the release of _Heat Wave_? [AU]

**Disclaimer:** If it looks or sounds like something from Castle, I don't own it.

**Spoilers:** Deep in Death [02x01] and Heat Wave [novel]

**A/N:** So, this story popped into my head while I was reading _Heat Wave_ and it wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote it.

There was a very loud banging on his front door, which was only interrupted by the buzzer being pushed for an extended period of time. Apparently someone really wanted in.

Pulling open the door, he was stunned by the figure he hadn't seen in months. If at all possible, she looked more angry than their last meeting.

"Beckett?"

"Castle," she stated, brushing past him, walking further into the apartment to set the grocery bag he was just now noticing on his coffee table. "Are your mom and Alexis here?"

"No..." he said hesitantly, not really wanting to let her know she could murder him without any witnesses. "They just left to see _Billy Elliot_. Why?"

Without a word she pulled the contents of the bag out: a bottle of tequila, a lime, and a container of salt. His eyes widened as he stared at the items, already having a very bad feeling about this. Beckett stormed into the kitchen, opening and closing drawers. "Where do you keep your knives?"

"Yeah, like I'm going to hand you a sharp utensil right now."

"No, come on. This is what you wanted, right... Rook?"

It was quite possible that he was about to do something stupid. "It was a better story."

Beckett slammed the drawer she had just opened and slowly began walking towards him. "A better story?"

"Yeah."

"You know, maybe you're right. I know the other cops I work with thought it was a good story. So good, in fact, that now they are convinced that the _reason _you're no longer following me around is because you broke-up with me."

"And did you tell them that it was actually the other way around?"

She was standing in front of him now, her eyes snapping with barely contained fury. "This is all just a big joke to you. Just like everything else. Do you know how long it took me to get their respect? The Captain, Ryan, and Esposito are the only people in that precinct who can talk to me without leering."

"I - "

"In fact, one of them made the mistake of making a joke in front of a suspect today. Not the most clever of perps, but he put two and two together. I completely lost control of the interrogation."

"That's - "

"So, if I'm going to be walking around with a scarlet letter on my chest, I want to have earned it. Where do you keep your knives?"

He stared at her, lost for words for possibly the first time in his life, so instead he walked into the kitchen and grabbed two shot glasses and a knife.

Beckett gazed at the glasses as he filled them like they were the most interesting thing in the world. He was having trouble reconciling the woman sitting next to him with the woman that had come in here with anger and a plan.

"Do I need to kick you in the face before we do this or did you want to skip that part?"

Ah, there she was.

"The only thing we're doing is having a drink."

And there was the eye contact.

"Excuse me?"

"Here." He handed her one of the shots which she promptly threw back, ignoring the salt but taking a slice of lime.

"What do you mean we're only having a drink?"

"Just what I said."

"I came here - "

"To punish me, but I guarantee that this will be much more tortuous than what you had planned."

He watched as her shoulders sagged and she sank into the couch. "Why did you do it? You had to know what people were going to think."

"It honestly didn't occur to me."

Beckett didn't look convinced. "You're not stupid, Castle."

"Oh, I can be pretty dumb. I thought that you would read it and come and yell at me." He smiled sadly at her. "Though I guess I was pretty close."

"You did this just to make me mad? What is this? Elementary school?"

"I did consider putting gum in your hair, but changed my mind."

"Why?"

"Well, it's pretty messy, and - "

"Castle!"

"Because I thought you yelling at me was better than you never speaking to me again."

He held her gaze, until she turned away blinking away what look suspiciously like tears. "Okay, I take it back. You are stupid. What could possibly be so important that you would put me though that to get me over here?"

"I need to tell you that - "

"What?" Something shifted in her eyes, but he couldn't place it because it was hidden too quickly.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have looked into your mom's case; it was wrong. I violated your trust, opened old wounds and did not respect your wishes. And if we're not going to see each other again, than you deserve to know... I am very, very sorry."

He'd practiced those words over and over in his mind, but now, as he sat on his couch, Beckett staring at him in silence, he couldn't help but wonder if he'd chosen the right ones.

"Castle?"

"Yeah?"

"Pour me another drink."


End file.
